Olympus SH-2 vs Panasonic FP3

Here is a extended overview of the Olympus SH-2 and Panasonic FP3, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Ultracompact by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. The resolution of the SH-2 (16MP) and the FP3 (14MP) is pretty comparable and they come with the exact same sensor size (1/2.3").

Photography Glossary

The SH-2 was unveiled 5 years later than the FP3 and that is a fairly significant difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus SH-2 being a Compact camera and the Panasonic FP3 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before we go in to a complete comparison, below is a brief view of how the SH-2 matches up against the FP3 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Below is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus Stylus SH-2 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-FP3. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus SH-2 Gallery & Panasonic FP3 Gallery.

In case you're intending to carry your camera frequently, you're going to have to factor its weight and measurements. The Olympus SH-2 comes with outer measurements of 109mm x 63mm x 42mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.7") with a weight of 271 grams (0.60 lbs) while the Panasonic FP3 has proportions of 99mm x 59mm x 19mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.7") accompanied by a weight of 155 grams (0.34 lbs).

Examine the Olympus SH-2 and Panasonic FP3 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you have chosen at the time. Here is the front view over all size comparison of the SH-2 against the FP3.

Looking at size and weight, the portability rating of the SH-2 and FP3 is 88 and 95 respectively.

Usually, its difficult to see the difference in sensor sizing just by going through specs. The photograph below may offer you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the SH-2 and FP3.

As you can plainly see, the two cameras have got the exact same sensor measurements albeit not the same MP. You can expect the Olympus SH-2 to show greater detail having an extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop photographs much more aggressively. The more modern SH-2 will have an advantage with regard to sensor innovation.